Russia Writers Lead Thousands in Push for Assembly Rights

May 13 (Bloomberg) -- Russian novelists and poets led
thousands on a protest walk along the central boulevards in
Moscow in the first major demonstration since Vladimir Putin
began his third term as president.

Russian writers led what they described as a “stroll” in
Moscow aimed at defending people’s rights to gather on the
streets without permission from the authorities.

Boris Akunin, a popular detective novelist, joined the
protesters along with poet Dmitry Bykov and novelist Lyudmila
Ulitskaya, signing books and autographs as they strolled along
the two kilometre-long boulevards. Protest organizers said the
crowd reached as many as 10,000 people while Moscow police
estimated attendance at 2,000.

Marchers also gathered at a camp in Chistye Prudy square
under a statue of Kazakh poet Abai Kunanbaev occupied by
opposition protesters since Putin’s inauguration ceremony on May
7. Protestors will stay in the camp until the next “million
march” on June 12, Dmitry Gudkov, a Russia duma deputy from the
opposition Just Russia party, told RIA Novosti.

Police detained hundreds of people on May 6 after clashes
between riot officers and demonstrators who gathered in their
thousands to rally against Putin 24 hours before his
inauguration. More arrests followed in the next three days as
protesters held a series of unauthorized gatherings.

Russia’s ruling party plans a measure that would impose
fines of as much as 1.5 million rubles ($50,000) on people
violating the law at protest meetings.